Despite Dharun Ravi’s attempt to get the entire Twitter world to tune in to his iChat feed of roommate Tyler Clementi’s dorm room sexual encounter, Ravi and co-suspect Molly Wei — both no longer of Rutgers University — did not see anythings sexual go down, their lawyers insist.
We’ve already seen Ravi and Wei’s supporters mount a mild defense against lifetime branding of them as completely douches. Now their counsel are working to dispel the notion they were a pair of voyeurs hoping to LOL at a classmate’s gay sex romp.
The twosome only saw Clementi, who would go on to kill himself, kissing and hugging another man, their attorneys say, also claiming the pair did not transmit any video and were the only ones who watched it. “When the forensic evidence from all the seized computers is revealed, the truth will come out,” says Steve Altman, Ravi’s attorney. “Nothing was transmitted beyond one computer and what was seen was only viewed for a matter of seconds.” Adds Rubin Sinins, Wei’s attorney: “I’m unaware of any evidence of sexual contact. The statute defining sexual contact refers to nudity and private parts, and, to my knowledge, nothing like that was seen. I’m also unaware of any evidence that any video was recorded, reproduced or disseminated in any way.” (On that last note I will point to Dharun’s Twitter feed, which clearly indicated his intent to “disseminate” the video stream.)
What’s unclear, then, is if Clementi and his partner’s activities stopped with kissing, or if Ravi just failed to do a decent job of aiming his peeping tom webcam. Which could ultimately save his ass.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Jeff Atwood
The invasion of privacy showing Tyler’s kissing another man is sufficient culpability; any casual observer would realize that he is gay.
Chris
Didn’t Clementi post on a message board that he saw Ravi’s tweet so he turned the computer off before he had sex with the guy?
http://gawker.com/5651659/is-this-webcam-spying-victim-tyler-clementis-last-call-for-help
ewe
Ravi and Wei are creepy. Their attorneys are creepy and the whole disgraceful oppressive spectacle is downright creepy. Fuck them both. How dare they try to mimimize their role in this death.
Cam
It’s irrelevent, they’re trying to say this wasn’t an invasion of privacy if they didn’t see anything that would have been ok in public. Again, it’s irrelevent, Ravi publicised the event, his roomate had an expectation of privacy in the room and Molly allowed him to spy using her equipment, Their lawyers can try to confuse the issue all they want, but it doesn’t matter.
Collin
The bottom line is that this kid killed himself because of what these two did. Their actions caused his death.
I’m sure their only goal was to torment and humiliate the gay roommate, but this is how ended.
They need to take some responsibility here. Either way they will forever be huge douche bags in my eyes.
mulletkitty
That is irrelevant! They are trying to escape culpability because it’s Tyler’s “fault” that he didn’t do more than kiss???
The guy set up cameras to catch Tyler in action and publicized this fact ahead of time; what did or not get caught on tape is irrelevant.
Their intent is clear, and the intent was to humiliate someone by recording them without their knowledge or permission in a sexual situation.
This sort of class-based privilege and evasion of responsibility really makes me sick.
Benjamin
That’s what lawyers are paid to do – be professional liars. Let’s hope the lies don’t work.
Avenger
Ravi and Wei are two great kids. Get off their backs!
Nathan
Straight people are devils. We’ll never be equals in their eyes, our causes and our people are nothing but fashion accessories and scapegoats. When it comes time to put up or shut up, you’ll get more jail time for killing a dog than a gay man.
Real Meat
The fact that they didn’t have sex only shows how innocent Tyler really is and how this is more about gay hate and discrimination that is killing teens.
Patrick
I don’t want Ravi or Wei’s ass saved. Sugar-coat it in whatever flavor you’d like, but their homophobic harassment of Clementi led to his death and this entire ordeal should be treated as a hate crime. Every attack on a gay person this year has been mishandled by the authorities with the attackers one-by-one getting off for free. How many kids in the Bronx gang have walked already? What happened to those Marines who beat up that man in Georgia? Was there ever an investigation into the police brutality report Kieth Kimmel filed days before his death? Does Tyler Clementi get a second chance to follow his life dreams? No–and neither should these fuckers.
Alex
either way, those assholes have reduced thier possible college list to liberty, grove city, and wheaton.
meego
Their attorneys can do all the damage control they want and minimize all they want but it is too late. The damage is done and the effects are too far reaching. Its going to take these 2 bozos a heck of a long time to live this down, if they ever do.
meego
@Avenger: Fuck off!
David Ehrenstein
http://fablog.ehrensteinland.com/2010/10/31/fait-diver-scruffy/
Jeff Atwood
@Avenger: If Ravi & Wei are so great, why have they remained mute and done everything they can to avoid taking responsibility? They have moved to keep their academic records as pure as possible (they will never escape a Google search, even if they change their names)? Where is their apology to the survivors? “Great kids” take responsibility for their actions, and they are not kids, they are apparently immature adults.
ewe
@Avenger: Why don’t you try to defend your bullshit intead of instigate?
B
No. 4 · Cam wrote, “It’s irrelevent, they’re trying to say this wasn’t an invasion of privacy if they didn’t see anything that would have been ok in public. Again, it’s irrelevent, Ravi publicised the event, his roomate had an expectation of privacy in the room and Molly allowed him to spy using her equipment, Their lawyers can try to confuse the issue all they want, but it doesn’t matter.”
Don’t assume it is “irrelevant”. According to http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704116004575522410465437660.html “Both are charged with crimes that carry prison sentences of up to five years if they are convicted, prosecutors said. Under New Jersey law, it is a fourth-degree crime to collect or view images of someone nude or engaged in sexual contact without their consent, prosecutors said. It is a third-degree crime to distribute those images, prosecutors said.”
http://www.samsachs.com/crimlaws/2c_14-9.shtml has the legalese.
It’s relevant because the penalty may be far less (or non-existent as a criminal case) if no sexual contact was observed. As they said in The Mikado (approximately), “Unfortunately, the law doesn’t say that. It should, but it doesn’t. You know how slovenly these acts are drawn. But don’t worry, I’ll get the law changed – next session.”